Plumbing apparatus



May 5, 11936. E. G. WATROUS PLUMBING APPARATUS Filed Dec. '7, 1933 3 Sheets-Sheet l y 1936. E. e. WATROUS PLUMBING APPARATUS Filed Dec. 7, 1935 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 May 5, 1936. WATROUS 2,040,067

PLUMBING APPARATUS Filed Dec. 7, 193 3 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 ayg- II [III llll Patented May 5, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PLUIWBING APPARATUS Application December 7, 1933, Serial No. 701,248

8 Claims.

This invention relates to flushing apparatus for water closets and more particularly to a water closet having an integrally formed housing for a pressure flush tank in combination with the tank and other parts associated therewith to provide for satisfactory flushing operation. While I am aware that pressure tanks have heretofore been proposed for this purpose, such tanks have not been properly arranged or constructed so that they were adapted for commercial purposes and as far as I am aware have never been adopted for general use.

The objects of this invention are to provide a water closet having an integrally formed chamber for receiving a tank; to provide a water closet having a chamber adjacent thereto with a pressure tank arranged in the chamber and suitable connections and devices for operatively connecting the tank with the closet and for supplying water thereto; to provide a pressure flush tank for a water closet or the like, with means for renewing the air supply therein; to provide a combined controlling and check valve for a pressure supply tank or the like; and to provide such novel features in construction and advantages in operation as will appearmore fully from the following description.

In the'accompanying drawings illustrating this invention,

. Figure l is a side view of my improved apparatus with parts broken away to show the interior construction;

Figure 2 is a plan View;

Figure 3 is a sectional plan view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is an enlarged sectional View of the automatic air supply mechanism and showing a portion of the supply valve chamber;

Figure 5 is an enlarged sectional View of the combined check and control valve and tank drain outlet; and

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the check valve element.

The bowl portion 1 of the water closet shown in these drawings may be of any ordinary or preferred form of construction, provided, however, that it is of the type adapted to be flushed in the well known manner by water entering through a suitable inlet controlled by a flush valve. At the rear of the bowl 1 is a housing or chamber 8 which is preferably formed integrally with the bowl, these parts being usually formed of porcelain, semi-porcelain, or the like. The housing 8 has a top or cover portion 9, the top surface of which is preferably in alignment with the top surface of the bowl as shown, and has a downwardly extending side wall [0 which merges with the sides of the bowl. The bottom of the housing is preferably left open. In the particular form shown, the side walls of the chamber are' approximately semi-circular in cross section and. the top is of polygonal form to provide a pleasing appearance. It will be noted that the discharge outlet of the closet extends into this chamber and in order to utilize the space therein to the fullest extent possible I provide a tank I l which is substantially crescent shaped in cross section. This tank comprises a bottom 12, top 13, concave front wall 14, and convex rear wall I5, as the latter walls are viewed from the exterior. The tank may rest on the floor or support on which the closet is mounted, or may be otherwise supported in the housing if desired.

Water is supplied through an inlet pipe Hi from any suitable source of supply and this pipe may be of the smaller sizes such as commonly used for supplying ordinary flush tanks. The pipe I6 is connected with a valve body I! having an outlet l8 which may be directly connected with the tank H by means of a bushing I9 as shown in Figure 3. The valve body ll has a main chamber 20 and an auxiliary chamber 2|, which are separated by a wall 22 having a communicating valve controlled opening 23. A valve stem 24 is threaded in an opening in a boss 25 on the side of the body and is provided with a handle 26. Any suitable packing such as shown at 21 may be provided for making a tight joint. The inner end of the stem has a valve 28 which is adapted to coact with the seat 23 to control the opening 23. A pin or projection 30 on the stem 24 engages with a socket 3! in a combined shut-off and check valve 32 which is adapted to move freely within certain limits on the pin. The outwardly projecting flange or valve portion 33 coacts with a seat 34 around the inlet orifice 35 which communicates with the pipe IS. A drain tube 36 leads from the chamber 2| to the closet outlet 31.

When the inlet valve 33 is closed, as shown in Figure 5, no water can enter the tank I I. When the valve is opened, as shown in Figure 3, water may enter the tank and the valve 28 will be closed. At this time the valve 33, which is adapted to slide on the pin 30, willserve as a check valve and prevent water from flowing from the tank into the pipe IS in the event that the pressure in the pipe I6 is lowered below a predetermined point. If the tank contains water and the valve 33 is again closed and the valve 28 opened, the water may pass out through the opening 23 and will be drained oif through the tube 36. This not only furnishes means for draining the tank but also furnishes means for replenishing the air supply therein in the event that it becomes necessary. As the water drains out from the tank through the tube 36 it is replaced by air which passes back through such tube and connections to the tank.

The tank II is of the pressure type, or one'in which a body of air is used to assist in discharging the water, as will presently be explained, and the necessity for replenishing the air in such tank is well understood, as it isapt to be carried out during the repeated operations of the apparatus. Therefore, in addition to the manually operated means for draining the tank and resupplying the same with air, I provide means for automatically replenishing the air in the tank, such means being shown in Fig. 4. The valve body I! has a threaded boss 38 with a cylinder 39 secured thereto. The boss is provided with a jet 'or inlet 4|! which provides communication from the main valve chamber 20 to the cylinder. The cylinder is provided at the top with a flanged ring 4| which is held in position by a cap 42. The cap 42 has a central bore or passageway 43 which is controlled by a check valve 44 comprising a disc of flexible material, the outer periphery of which is held between the cap and the ring as shown, and which has apertures to permit the air to pass through. This flap valve permits air to enter through the cap but prevents discharge thereof. A piston or plunger 45 is mounted in the cylinder and is similar to the plungerof an air pump in that itcompresses the air when moved in one direction and permits the air to pass by it when moved in the opposite direction. The piston 45 has a stem 46 which is provided with a disc 41 which acts as a guide for the piston but does not interfere with the passage of air through the cylinder. The stem 46 coacts with the jet or inlet projection 49 and serves as a guide for the piston. A spring 50 is interposed between the piston 45 and the flange of the ring 4| andtends to move the piston to inner or depressed position, this spring 7 having sufficient tension to move the piston downwardly when the pressure in the cylinder 39 is reduced beyond a predetermined amount. It will be noted that a wall or bafiie 48 is arranged at the bottom of the jet 40 so that the water passing from the main chamber into the outlet |8 will act as an injector to draw the air from the cylinder and carry it into the tank.

When the water flows into the tank under the usual city or delivery pressure, which of course must be suflicient to operate the apparatus, it will also enter the cylinder 39 and gradually force the piston up to raised position as shown in Fig. 4. During this operation the air trapped in the space between the piston and the cap will be forced past the piston and into the cylinder. When the pressure in the tank is reduced, as during a flushing operation, the spring 50 will force the piston downwardly and will force the air out through the opening 40 and into the tank. During the downward movement a fresh supply of air is drawn in through the hole 43 in the cap and will be held in the cylinder by the check valve 44 ready for the next compressing operation. By means of this arrangement air is automatically drawn into the system at each flushing operation and a suflicient supply will be maintained in the tank.

The tank II has an outlet pipe 5| which is tightly secured in the cover l3, as shown in Figure 1, and extends to a point adjacent to the bottom of the tank in order to maintain a supply of air therein. The lower end of the pipe is preferably beveled or tapered as indicated at 52 to insure a substantially full volume to be discharged through the pipe without turbulence or noise. The outlet pipe 5| is connected with the inlet 53 of the bowl by a pipe 54 which extends up through an opening 55 in the top 9 and then down to the inlet 53. This pipe is provided with a flush valve 56 of any suitable construction such as commonly used for this purpose.

It is generally understood that the use of flush valves with pipes directly connected to the water system is a preferred arrangement but in many instances the lead-in pipes are of too small diameter to serve sucessfully for the flushing, even if suflicient pressure is maintained in the water system. By interposing the pressure tank as shown and described, I provide means whereby a sufiicient volume of water at the required pressure may be quickly delivered to the bowl inasmuch as the outlet pipe from the tank may be made sufiiciently large for this purpose and of considerably larger size than the inlet pipe l6. It will of course be obvious to those familiar with the art that when the flush valve 56 is tripped or manipulated, a direct passageway is provided from the inlet pipe l6, through the tank to the bowl and a certain amount of water will be supplied directly in this manner and at the same time relieving the pressure in the pipe 54 will permit the compressed air to force the water in the tank out through the outlet pipe to augment the flushing supply. As soon as the flush valve closes, the water from the system will again enter the tank and build up a pressure therein equal to the pressure in the system and in order to prevent the bending of the concave wall I4 I prefer to provide tie rods 51 which connect the same with the convex wall I 5 as shown in Figure 1. The mounting of the tank within the chamber provided at the rear of the bowl, not only provides for an improved operation but the tank will be protected so that it is not apt to sweat or to have water condense thereon, and at the same time the entire device will have a particularly pleasing appearance.

While I have shown and described a preferred form of my invention, it will be observed that changes may be made to adapt the same for different bowls or different conditions and therefore I do not wish to be limited to the exact construction herein shown and described except as set forth in the following claims, in which I claim:

1. A plumbing apparatus including a water closet having in integrally formed tank chamber, a pressure tank mounted in'said chamber, a connection from a source of water supply to the tank, an outlet leading from the tank to the closet bowl, and a flush valve for controlling the discharge through said outlet. a

2. The combination of'a water closet having an integrally formed tank chamber at the rear there of, a pressure tank in said chamber, means for supplying the tank with water, a discharge pipe from the tank to the closet bowl of sufliciently large diameter to flush the bowl in a predeter' mined time and means for controlling the flow through said discharge pipe. 7 7

3. The combination with a water closet, of a chamber arranged at the rear thereof, having side walls and a top but open at the bottom, said chamber being of irregularly crescent shape, a crescent shaped pressure tank positioned in said chamber, an outlet pipe from the tank to the closet bowl, a flush valve for controlling the outlet pipe and means for connecting the tank to a Water supply.

4. An apparatus of the character set forth, comprising a water closet formed of porcelain or the like, and having an integrally formed chamber with side walls and a top but open at the bottom, a closed tank in said chamber, an outlet pipe from the bottom of the tank to the flushing inlet of the closet, a valve for controlling the flow through said pipe, means for supplying water under pressure to the tank, the arrangement being such that an air space is provided at the top of the tank, and means for introducing air into the tank.

5. The combination with a water closet bowl having an outlet, of a pressure tank for applying liquid to said bowl and adapted to retain air for pressure purposes, a supply pipe for supplying liquid thereto and means for shutting off the supply and simultaneously opening a drain from the tank to said outlet.

6. The combination with a pressure tank of the character set forth, of a cylinder, a connection from the cylinder to the tank, a cap for the cylinder having an air inlet, a check valve controlling said inlet, a piston mounted in the cylinder adapted to compress air when moved in one direction only, and a spring tending to move the piston inwardly, the arrangement being such that, as the pressure in the cylinder is varied beyond predetermined limits, the piston will be operated and will cause air to be drawn into the cylinder and discharged into the tank.

'7. Means for pumping air into a receptacle, comprising a cylinder, a connection from the cylinder to the receptacle whereby the pressure in the cylinder will be varied in accordance with the pressure in the receptacle, a plunger in said cylinder for forcing the air inwardly, a closure for the end of the cylinder, having an air opening therein, a check valve for said opening, and a spring tending to move the piston against the pressure in the cylinder, the arrangement being such that when the pressure in the cylinder is reduced the piston will move inwardly and will draw air in through the closure and when the pressure is increased, the piston will be moved outwardly and will force the air trapped at the end of the cylinder, intothe cylinder past the piston.

8. In an apparatus of the character set forth, including a water closet and a coacting pressure tank, of means for pumping air into the tank comprising a cylinder, a connection from the cylinder to the tank whereby the pressure in the cylinder will be varied in accordance with the pressure in the tank, a plunger in said cylinder for forcing the air inwardly, a closure for the end of the cylinder having an air opening therein, a check valve for said opening and a spring tending to move the plunger against the pressure in the cylinder, the arrangement being such that when the pressure in the cylinder is reduced the plunger will move inwardly and will draw air in through the closure and when the pressure is increased the plunger will be moved outwardly and will force the air trapped at the end of the cylinder into the cylinder past the plunger.

EARL G. WATROUS. 

